The Combinations of White, Blue, and UV-A Light Provided by Supplementary Light-Emitting Diodes Promoted the Quality of Greenhouse-Grown Cucumber Seedlings

Zhengnan Yan, Chunling Wang, Long Wang, Xin Li, Guanjie Wang and Yanjie Yang ()
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Zhengnan Yan: College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China
Chunling Wang: College of Water Resources and Architecture Engineering, Tarim University, Aral 843300, China
Long Wang: College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China
Xin Li: College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China
Guanjie Wang: Shandong Qicai Manor Vegetable Food Base Co., Ltd., Shouguang 262700, China
Yanjie Yang: College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China

Agriculture, 2022, vol. 12, issue 10, 1-14

Abstract: Insufficient solar light in winter inside the greenhouse may lead to a lower quality of vegetable seedlings, and supplemental light is an effective technique to solve this problem. This study evaluated the impacts of supplementary white (W)-light-emitting diodes (LEDs), ultraviolet A LEDs (UV-A), white and blue LEDs (WB), the combinations of white and UV-A LEDs (W-UVA), and white, blue, and UV-A LEDs (WB-UVA) on the leaf morphology, photosynthetic traits, biomass accumulation, root architecture, and hormone content of cucumber ( Cucumis sativus L. cv. Tianjiao No. 5) seedlings grown in the greenhouse. The results indicated that supplementary LED lighting led to a decreased plant height, shorter hypocotyl length, bigger leaf area, and thicker leaf compared with those grown with solar light only, regardless of light quality. The shoot fresh weight, root fresh weight, and seedling quality index of cucumber seedlings grown under the combinations of white, blue, and UVA radiations increased by 30.8%, 3.2-fold, and 1.8-fold, respectively, compared with those grown with natural light only. However, no significant differences were exhibited in the biomass accumulation of greenhouse-grown cucumber seedlings between the control and the UVA treatment. The cellulose content and stem firmness of greenhouse-grown cucumber seedlings grown under the combinations of white, blue, and UVA radiations increased by 49.9% and 13.1%, respectively, compared with those grown under white light only. Additionally, the cytokinin content of cucumber seedlings was promoted by over 36.7% by applying supplementary light. In summary, the combinations of white, blue, and UVA radiations led to compact morphological characteristics, superior mechanical properties, and preferable growth performance, which could be applied as an available lighting strategy to obtain the desired morphological and quality properties of vegetable seedlings.

Keywords: cytokinin content; supplementary light; net photosynthetic rate; ultraviolet; stem firmness (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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